Microsoft 365 Licensing Updates and Portal Enhancements: What You Need to Know

Posted: January 17th

Author: Microwarehouse

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Listen to this blog instead. (6.29 minutes)

This blog post is based on our partner update webinar held on January 24th, you can watch on demand here.

Let’s dive into some significant updates and practical tools that can help streamline your licensing management.
In the ever-evolving landscape of Microsoft 365 licensing, staying current with the latest changes and improvements is crucial for businesses and IT professionals.

April 1st Price increase

From December 1st, Copilot is available on monthly billing. It’s still only available on annual commit, but the billing can be monthly if required. This billing cycle option comes with a 5% price increase over upfront annual payment.

From April 1st, this pricing model will apply to all new and renewing CSP license subscriptions. This means annual commit subscription renewing after March 31st 2025 will see a 5% increase unless they are paid up front in full. If the sub renews before April 1st, the increase will not apply until the 2026 renewal.

Copilot for Non Profits

Copilot is now available to be added to Non Profit tenants with a 15% discount automatically applied at checkout. This has been available since Dec 1st 2024. If an NFP already have copilot subscriptions on their tenant prior to this date, the discounted price will not apply till their next renewal date. Should an NFP require additional seats, please talk to your MWH account rep about best options.

Microsoft 365 E5 Promo

CSP partners will receive 15% off the net partner price of Microsoft 365 E5 when eligible new-to-offer customers purchase a Microsoft 365 E5 annual subscription.

Promotion highlights: 

Duration: Available January 1 to June 30, 2025

Discount: 15% off Microsoft 365 E5 and Microsoft 365 E5 (no Teams), annual term (monthly or annual billing)

Customer eligibility: New-to-offer customers (FirstPurchase)

Now is the time for CSP partners to leverage this new promotion during customer renewal conversations. CSP partners should prioritise closing current Microsoft Office 365 or Microsoft 365 E3 customers with the opportunity to reduce the burden of managing multiple vendors while improving customer security.

This promo applies automatically to eligible customers purchasing Microsoft 365 E5. If you don’t know if your e

Price Alignment Updates

Microsoft continues its semi-annual process of aligning prices globally with the US dollar. While Euro pricing remains stable, Sterling users should prepare for a 5-6% adjustment downwards beginning February 1st. Yes you read that right, it’s a price decrease…  These changes will automatically apply to all renewals and new subscriptions after Feb 1st on the Sterling Portal.

Enterprise Plans and Teams Licensing

A significant shift occurred in February 2024 when Microsoft discontinued enterprise plans that included Teams for first-time buyers. This change stemmed from European competition regulations, addressing concerns about market fairness in the telecommunications sector. While Teams remains included in business plans, new enterprise customers need to purchase Teams separately.

For organizations requiring enterprise plans with Teams functionality, there are solutions available. The current methodology form Microsoft involves adding E3 without Teams and then including Teams as a separate add-on, typically resulting in an approximately €3 per month increase. Should you have a large seat requirement, please talk to us first to ensure we have considered all potential options

Managing Renewal Seasons Effectively

February and March traditionally see a surge in CSP renewals, largely due to historical incentives that encouraged annual commitment transitions. To help manage this busy period, several tools and features are available:

– Detailed renewal reports
– Portal functionality designed specifically for renewal management
– License usage tracking and analytics
– Proactive renewal planning capabilities

License Management Improvements

Understanding the NCE (New Commerce Experience) grace period is crucial – there is only a seven-day window (168 hours!) to cancel or reduce license quantities. However, the system offers flexible in-place upgrade options. Users can upgrade from basic plans to more comprehensive solutions, with billing adjustments occurring the following day. If you need a demo on this, please reach out. We have had scenarios where a reseller adds a new license for a user thinking that they can cancel the old one and that is not the case and can be a costly mistake!

Co-Termination Features

The introduction of co-termination (or end-date alignment) has become increasingly valuable, especially with the launch of Copilot, which is currently only available with annual commitment. This feature allows organisations to align multiple license renewal dates, simplifying management and budgeting processes

Risk Centre

The newly implemented Risk Centre brings robust monitoring and management capabilities:
– Centralised alert overview across all tenants
– Configurable severity settings for different alerts
– Email notification system
– Alert resolution tracking
– Dashboard integration for quick status checks

License Assignment Tracking

The portal now offers enhanced visibility into license utilization with features like:
– Visual indicators of license assignment status
– Renewal tracking
– Usage analytics
– Quantity management tools

These improvements make it easier than ever to maintain optimal license allocation and prevent mistakes that can be costly and time consuming.

Useful links

The following are some links where you as a partner can keep up to date with all of Microsoft’s announcements should you wish to do so. I find it a great cure for insomnia 😊

As always, if you need any help with any of the above, or would like to book some time with any of the M365 team, please reach out to us.

Staying Informed by follow MicroWarehouse on LinkedIn and make sure to have subscribed to our mailing list.

Alternatively, book a call with a member of the team.